I am a regular user of Priceline "name your price" hotel scheme. The whole idea behind it was that when hotels have unsold space, they might as well fill it up. A cheaper price is still better to the hotel than an empty room. If it were a 4 star hotel, you'd get a 4 star room and 4 star service at a reduced price. The hotel would get a reasonable amount of money for their empty room which, otherwise, they would have receive nothing. Everybody wins.
Well, Delta hotels in Canada, and especially this one, have found a way around this. They call it a 4 star hotel but it's not if you book on Priceline, hotwire, or a similar service that now many websites emulate. This hotel has many floors specially reserved for these "lower paying" customers. The beds do not have cushy toppers or fluffy comforters. The suites are missing furniture and may only include a nightstand and two chairs in the corner of what they consider the "living room". The "sofa," if there is one, is a smallish love seat barely big enough for two small behinds. The rooms are not 4 star. In my view what you get is a 2.5 star room.
So, I complained at the front desk and was met with silly arguments like "you wouldn't expect us to rent a penthouse for a Priceline rate." It was clear they had head this many times before. If it's advertized as a 4 star room, I expect a 4 star room. I complained the next day again, but this time I could find a manager and I was moved to a "regular" room which was much better. This proved I was correct in my assessment.
But, even these regular room room were no better than the mini-suites I've seen of the roadside chains. Not a 4 star downtown hotel.
Both Delta and Priceline need to clean up their act on this matter.
Room Tip: Don't get stuck in one of the "Priceline rooms".
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This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
4 February 2012
Dear Guest,
Thank you for taking the time to comment on your stay.
We appreciate all your comments as it enables us to improve our services for you and all of our future guests. I would be happy to chat with you further in more detail so that we can accommodate you for your next stay with us.
Cheers,
Doug
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC